August 16, 2020 By TLS1914.org

As the Founder & CEO of Unity Care and Founder & Chair Emeritus of the Black Leadership Kitchen Cabinet, and long time member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity Inc., Theta Lambda Sigma Chapter serving San Jose, California, Bro. André Chapman has dedicated his life’s work to advocating for underserved communities while challenging formal system partners on how to effectively engage communities of color.

In late March of this year Bro. Chapman awoke in the middle of the night thinking about the disproportionate impact COVID-19 was having upon the Black community. He thought about the confusion and misunderstanding about the disease within his own family and the organization he leads. He recognized the lack of trustworthy communications and education about COVID-19 for the Black community, and he felt compelled to take an offensive stand.

From that 4:00 AM brainstorm, his COVID-19 Black initiative was born. An initiative of Unity Care in partnership with the Black Leadership Kitchen Cabinet, COVID-19 Black aims to educate African Americans not only about how to protect themselves from COVID-19 but also about the other health and wellness issues impacting their community. We refer to these as the backpacks of trauma that affect all aspects of our lives: health, education, housing, employment, the legal system, environmental and social well-being.

The COVID-19 Black initiative is an opportunity to leverage our collective strengths so that our community is better engaged, informed, and educated about the preventive measures needed to fight this health crisis. COVID-19 Black is also a platform to shape a narrative of our own content and storytellers to best convey our messaging and strategies for overpowering this legacy of discrimination.

More than 700 people participated in the first regional virtual Town Hall Webinar on July 30th, where we heard from African American leaders of community organizations and public health departments from all around the Bay Area. Click the play button to watch the full recording of the webinar.

For more information on COVID-19 Black and how to get involved please visit covid19black.org.

For more information on Theta Lambda Sigma Chapter please visit tls1914.org.